Business of Law

June 01, 2020
Reed Smith Makes Deeper Austerity Cut As Virus Persists

Reed Smith LLP, which already announced a series of salary reductions earlier in the year, confirmed Monday that it would be making another round of cost-cutting measures to weather the financial impact of COVID-19, including extended pay cuts, furloughs and layoffs.
June 01, 2020
Bayer Slams Pet Med Co.'s Bid To Serve Docs Via Email

Bayer HealthCare urged a California federal court against allowing a generic pet medication maker to flout international protocol for how to serve documents in a $114 million antitrust case, saying the company is trying to use the COVID-19 pandemic as a scapegoat for its own delays and errors.
June 01, 2020
Titan Of The Plaintiffs Bar: Lieff Cabraser's Jonathan Selbin

It's been three months and counting since Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP partner Jonathan Selbin joined the exodus from pandemic-stricken Manhattan. Back in his darkened office, there sits a memento from his early days as a plaintiffs attorney: a white cowboy hat given him by a client in one of his first cases.
June 01, 2020
2 Partners Say NY Firm Stiffed Them On Compensation

Two former non-equity partners at international firm CKR Law LLP have filed suit against the firm, alleging that it failed to pay them properly in the months before their departure, including by allegedly cheating one partner out of over $300,000 in partner draws.
June 01, 2020
15 Minutes With Xandr's Chief Legal Officer

To bring some levity to their recent virtual legal department meetings, chief legal officer Lori Fink and her team at AT&T's advertising company have shown off their favorite coffee mugs, T-shirts and vacation accessories. Here, Fink shares how they have adjusted to working remotely and how she built a legal team.
June 01, 2020
Boies Adds 2 From DOJ As Another Partner Exits In NY

Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, which is undertaking a firmwide restructuring process, announced Monday it has hired two partners from within the ranks of the U.S. Department of Justice to bolster its white collar and trial capabilities in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.
June 01, 2020
High Court Turns Away Wis. Bar Dues Case Despite Dissent

The Supreme Court declined Monday to take up a First Amendment challenge to the State Bar of Wisconsin's mandatory dues scheme, prompting a dissent by Justice Clarence Thomas likening the payments to union fees the high court outlawed in a 2018 ruling.
May 31, 2020
Federal Officer Shot Dead At Oakland Court As Protests Raged

A Federal Protective Service contract security officer guarding the district courthouse in Oakland, California, was killed in a drive-by shooting Friday night, and another was critically injured as thousands of protesters marched along downtown city streets.
May 31, 2020
Pandemic Hinders Bar Exam Retakers Who Aid The Indigent

As New York courts begin to lift coronavirus restrictions, a group of law school graduates who represent the indigent and have failed the bar exam twice have been forced to drop their clients for the foreseeable future. Public defender groups say the times demand an exception to the rules.
May 31, 2020
Pryor Cashman Atty Charged In Firebomb Attack On NYPD

Brooklyn federal prosecutors on Saturday night charged two New York City attorneys, including a Pryor Cashman LLP associate, in connection with a firebomb attack on a New York Police Department vehicle the night before amid violent protests sparked by the police killing of a black man in Minneapolis.
May 29, 2020
In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.
May 29, 2020
Pierce Bainbridge Calls Interim Class Lead Bid Premature

Pierce Bainbridge's remaining lawyers have urged a Texas federal judge not to appoint a new firm formed by their ex-colleagues as interim lead counsel in a proposed class action against Southwest Airlines and Boeing, saying the move would be "premature."
May 29, 2020
Calif. Judge Probes Avenatti Atty Efficacy Over Virus Worries

A California federal judge questioned whether counsel for Michael Avenatti was able to handle his criminal defense amid the COVID-19 pandemic, zeroing in on the attorney's remarks in a recent status report that his ability to prepare for trial has been "deeply impacted."
May 29, 2020
Stroock Slashes Atty Pay While Grappling With COVID-19

Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP on Friday confirmed that pay cuts and buyouts are on deck for its attorneys and some of its staff, the latest in a list of firms to cut pay due to economic hardship spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic.
May 29, 2020
GOP Proxy Voting Challenge Faces Long Odds In Courts

As new House proxy voting rules let lawmakers act remotely during the pandemic, constitutional scholars told Law360 that a Republican lawsuit challenging the procedure has little chance of success. Some former GOP lawmakers expressed reservations about their fellow Republicans' arguments and urged them to support some form of remote proceedings.
May 29, 2020
Leahy, Grassley Want High Court Arguments Televised

Two U.S. senators who previously chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday to continue to allow the livestreaming of oral arguments after the COVID-19 pandemic abates.
May 29, 2020
Boies Schiller Adds Alternative Bonus Option Amid Overhaul

As part of its ongoing restructuring, Boies Schiller Flexner LLP is revamping its compensation structure for associates, offering them the option to receive bonuses based on the years they have been with the firm instead of on hours billed, the firm confirmed Friday.
May 29, 2020
As Virus Persists, Law Grads Urged To Rise To Its Challenges

With invocations of legal trailblazers past and present and encouragement to find opportunity in trying times, five high-profile law school commencement speakers, including Joe Biden and Eric Holder, urged graduates to address the inequalities made even more apparent by the pandemic.
May 29, 2020
Law360's Pro Say: COVID Crimes Crackdown

Over the past few weeks, federal prosecutors have launched a wave of criminal cases accusing people of trying to take advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic.
May 29, 2020
NJ's Judicial Vacancies To Collide With COVID-19 Crisis

The ongoing ban on New Jersey state jury trials due to the COVID-19 pandemic could make a bad situation even worse for courts already facing judge shortages as they struggle to get through the cases piling up during the crisis, leading to further gridlock in Garden State litigation.
May 29, 2020
Funder Wants Out Of Pierce Bainbridge Representation Case

Litigation funder Pravati Capital LLC moved to exit a suit filed by a Pennsylvania attorney against it and Pierce Bainbridge over the alleged theft of a case involving the Gears of War video game, saying that since the case was unsuccessful, any claim against the funder for unjust enrichment was invalid.
May 29, 2020
GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has offered guidance to companies on how to reopen, and the IRS has provided added deadline relief to some employers and employee plans. These are some of the stories in corporate legal news you may have missed in the past week.
May 29, 2020
Pittsburgh State Courts Start To Reopen, But Slowly

State courts in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, will begin to reopen to the public for nonjury trials and other proceedings as the state loosens its COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, but will still conduct as much work as possible remotely through the end of August, according to the courts' latest updated emergency plan.
May 29, 2020
Titan Of The Plaintiffs Bar: Hagens Berman's Steve Berman

Like many children who came of age in the late 1960s and early '70s, Steve Berman's early adulthood was defined by the Vietnam War. His father had been in the military and supported the war, at least initially, but his mother was an outspoken liberal and bitterly opposed it, as did the young man who would later go on to found one of the nation's most successful class action law firms.
May 28, 2020
Seattle Fed. Courts May Not Hold Trials Until 2021, Judge Says

A Seattle federal judge made an educated guess this week that civil and criminal jury trials in the Western District of Washington will likely not resume until at least 2021 due to the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

Expert Analysis

Q&A

Coping With A Pandemic: Winston & Strawn's Bryant Gardner

As society continues to adapt to COVID-19, Law360 is sharing reactions from around the business and legal community. Today's perspective comes from Washington, D.C.-based Bryant Gardner, a partner at Winston & Strawn specializing in the shipping and maritime industry.
How Law Firms Can Maximize COVID-19 Insurance Coverage

Law firms struggling due to the pandemic should identify relevant insurance policies and provisions, be mindful of notice requirements that could interfere with coverage, and push back against policy exclusions, say Robin Cohen and James Smith at McKool Smith.
Protecting Privilege When Communicating With Contractors

Courts continue to define where information shared with independent contractors and specialists fits for purposes of the attorney-client privilege, and recent decisions show that jurisdictions vary in their application of the third-party waiver exception, say Matthew Hamilton and Donna Fisher at Pepper Hamilton.
Q&A

Coping With A Pandemic: Morgan Lewis' Jennifer Breen

As society continues to adapt to COVID-19, Law360 is sharing reactions from around the business and legal community. Today's perspective comes from Washington, D.C.-based Jennifer Breen, a partner at Morgan Lewis focusing on tax controversy and planning matters.
Virtual Caucuses Can Improve The Mediation Process

Both during the current crisis and in the future, integrating virtual, private caucuses between the mediator and each party into the mediation timetable would create an overall superior process, says mediator Marc Isserles at JAMS.
What All Attorneys Can Learn From Female Rainmakers

Soon lawyers may find an unrecognizable competitive landscape in which most firms will be vulnerable — if they don't rapidly start upgrading their client development tactics to ones like those used by female rainmakers, says marketing consultant Craig Levinson, who recently interviewed Jennifer Trock, Desiree Moore and Debra Fischer about their secrets to success.
Inside The ABA's New Guidance On Willful Blindness

An opinion issued last week by the American Bar Association's ethics committee makes clear that lawyers who engage in willful blindness — ignoring facts that a client may be using their services to advance fraudulent conduct — are on a collision course with numerous ABA rules, says Kevin Shepherd at Venable.
Q&A

Coping With A Pandemic: LegalShield's Jeff Bell

As society continues to adapt to COVID-19, Law360 is sharing reactions from around the business and legal community. Today's perspective comes from Oklahoma-based Jeff Bell, CEO of identity theft protection provider LegalShield.
Promoting Lawyer Well-Being Is More Essential Than Ever

As the COVID-19 pandemic profoundly tests the overall well-being of lawyers, firms with behavioral health programs can leverage or adapt many existing resources to respond to the crisis, while firms without formal programs can find little ways to make a big difference, says Krista Larson, director of employee well-being at Morgan Lewis.
Q&A

Coping With A Pandemic: VC Specialist Lindsay Karas Stencel

As society continues to adapt to COVID-19, Law360 is sharing reactions from around the business and legal community. Today's perspective comes from Columbus, Ohio-based Lindsay Karas Stencel, a partner at Thompson Hine and co-founder of venture capital startup W Fund.
Q&A

Coping With A Pandemic: Massey & Gail's Lenny Gail

As society continues to adapt to COVID-19, Law360 is sharing reactions from around the business and legal community. Today's perspective comes from Chicago-based Leonard Gail, a trial lawyer and founding partner of Massey & Gail.
Remote Depositions Bring Ethics Considerations For Lawyers

Utilizing virtual litigation technologies and participating in remote depositions require attorneys to beware of inadvertently violating their ethical obligations, including the principal duty to provide competent representation, say attorneys at Troutman Sanders.
More Reasons To Redesign The Open Office Post-Pandemic

A new South Korean study demonstrates that the so-called open office adopted by so many U.S. companies is extremely dangerous in the COVID-19 world, which is important to consider as Congress may provide employers federal immunity from COVID-19 suits as they reopen, says Steven Moore at Withers.
Early Pandemic-Related Shifts We're Seeing In Legal Finance

As law firms chart their paths forward during these unsettled times, litigation funders are already observing changes in the types of products firms are seeking, such as an increase in one-off case funding requests, says Eric Blinderman at Therium.
Q&A

Coping With A Pandemic: Purple Campaign's Ally Coll

As society continues to adapt to COVID-19, Law360 is sharing reactions from around the business and legal community. Today's perspective comes from Washington, D.C.-based Ally Coll, president and co-founder of The Purple Campaign.